Kauai Stars in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue

It’s the first time in decades that the Garden Isle has been featured in the annual feature.

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The Garden Island has this item on the generous space given to Kauai in the latest Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue. Excerpt:

The island of Kauai — 22 pages worth — is featured front and center in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit 2015 edition, which hit newsstands Monday.

There’s Russian model and actress Irina Shayk standing tall above Waimea Canyon. Emily DiDonato pictured on a vacant Polihale Beach. Gigi Hadid with a horse along a sandy stretch of coastline in Mahaulepu. Emily Ratajkowski at Makua (Tunnels) Beach.

“They really, really took good care of us,” Sue Kanoho, executive director of the Kauai Visitors Bureau, said of the publication.

KVB utilized $70,000 in county funding to support SI with the production costs for the shoot, while the St. Regis Princeville Resort provided in-kind support with special rate accommodations. …

The Garden Island notes that the Garden Isle “is the only Hawaiian Island featured in this year’s issue, and it is the first time the Garden Isle has been included in the annual edition since 1989.”

The annual swimsuit issue is a bestseller for SI but has been criticized for objectifying women and having little to do with illustrating sports.

Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue logo

Screen shot.

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